Hyundai Engineering to make hydrogen from plastic waste

Hyundai Engineering Co., a construction unit of South Korea's Hyundai Motor Group, is spending 400 billion won ($336 million) to build a plant to produce hydrogen from plastic waste.

The company said on Tuesday it will break ground for the factory in Dangjin, South Chungcheong Province in the first half of next year with an aim to start commercial production in 2024.

Hyundai Engineering plans to complete the needed technology test to produce high-purity clean hydrogen from plastic waste by the end of this year.

Once built, the factory will be able to process 100,000 tons a year of plastic waste to make 22,000 tons of hydrogen annually, enough to power 150,000 hydrogen-fueled vehicles to run 14,000 km each.

The company said it is also testing carbon dioxide capture and storage systems at Hyundai Steel Co.’s plant in Incheon to use the technology in processing plastic waste.

Hyundai Engineering’s latest moves are part of its efforts to transition into an eco-friendly business for sustainable growth.

IPO BY MARCH TO RAISE FUNDS FOR ECO-FRIENDLY PROJECTS

The company has said it will secure funds through an initial share sale for eco-friendly projects such as next-generation small nuclear reactors, plastic recycling and hydrogen generation from ammonia.

The unlisted company is seeking to raise as much as 1.2 trillion won by listing its shares on the Korean bourse by March.

Bookbuilding with institutional investors is scheduled for Jan. 25-26, ahead of retail subscriptions on Feb. 3-4. Mirae Asset Securities Co., KB Securities Co. and Goldman Sachs are the IPO managers.

Specialized in plant business, building and housing works and infrastructure projects, Hyundai Engineering posted 258.7 billion won in operating profit on revenue of 7.19 trillion won on a consolidated basis in 2020.

Plant and infrastructure construction accounts for 45.5% of its business portfolio.

Write to Jeong-Jin Eun at silver@hankyung.com
In-Soo Nam edited this article.